


Waking me softly

by Nocat



Category: Original Work
Genre: Age Difference, Cunnilingus, Dubious Consent, F/M, Light Bondage, Porn with Feelings, Quiet Sex, Vaginal Fingering
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-16
Updated: 2019-10-18
Packaged: 2020-12-17 15:57:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21057071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nocat/pseuds/Nocat
Summary: Rowan, a farrier in the local village made a mistake. One he thought had gone unnoticed. Despite his worries he thinks he's gotten away with it, and takes his shame with him to bed. He's rudely woken in his bed to discover that he'll be made to confront his errors.





	1. Chapter 1

Something woke Rowan, and at first he thought the pre dawn light had gotten past the shutters. But there wasn't enough light leaking in for that, it was still that dark grey of night that blanketed his room.

As he woke he could feel something strange about his limbs, his arms above his head wouldn't move far, and his ankles felt...tight. Something was restraining him to the heavy bed frame. He jerked his limbs to try and get them free with a grunt, only spotting the pale silhouette sitting on the edge of his bed when she moved.

She tilted her head and put her hand on his bare waist.

"It's ok, Rowan." She said softly. 

Even in the dark he could hear the smile on her face.

"...this isn't funny, girl." He grunted. In the back of his mind he wondered if she was angry with him. If she was going to beat him for fondling her things.

"Do I sound like I'm making a joke?" She asked, moving further onto the bed and straddling his waist.

The warm weight against him made him shift on the bed, unsure how comfortable he should be. The sensation of her bare thighs against his sides was a pleasing one regardless of what she intended for him.

Wait...her thighs? His body went rigid and he strained his eyes to try and see what she was wearing. Her pinafore? Maybe? No trousers that was for certain. He couldn't feel any bloomers or stockings.

This was quickly getting dangerous,

"Get. Off. Me." He said with as much weight as he could muster. Talwyn seemed mostly amused still, touching at his chest to hear his words reverberate out of him.

"Why? I'm not hurting you am I?"

"Are you angry, girl?" He asked, eyes darting over her and lingering on her thighs. He could feel his vision adjusting to the dark, the pale outline of her skin becoming more obvious. No stockings visible.

"Why would I be angry?" She asked in a more matter of fact tone than before, but her fingers lingered around his chest, as if examining him.

"Because of what happened by the river. I don't have time for games, girl." He snorted like an angry bull, pulling at whatever was restraining him. This strange, intimate scrutiny was making him nervous. 

That didn't stop his body from reacting to her touch, and he felt that deep shame welling up from before. It rose up about the same as his cock did, pushing up against his cover.

"Talwyn."

"What?" He sighed in frustration, turning his head to look at what was holding him to the bed frame.

"My name is not ‘girl’, it's Talwyn. And I think you know that Rowan." She leant forwards, palms pressing on his chest. There was hardly any weight to her at all. It made sense, she was still a girl to Rowan. Though she had some hips on her, that was for certain.

He stopped his pulling to look back at her face, it was getting a bit too close now. There was something strange and striking about her features, something that almost reminded him of how butterflies had warning colours. Some had wide eyes to warn off predators. Frightening face to stop them from getting eaten.

"Yeah, yeah I know your name." He settled again, watching her more cautiously now. She seemed to have tied him with that bundling twine the herbalist used from what he could tell.

The dawn grey room came into relief, he could see the edges of things more clearly now. It couldn't be very late in the morning at all. The herbalist woke very early indeed, Talwyn was probably used to it.

Rowan was quietly grateful that she hadn't gone to some of the young men in the village, weeping and wailing about his misstep. Though she hadn't seemed that upset at the river either, just surprised. This private, more intimate revenge was more like her. 

The fear that was beginning to gnaw at him wasn't enough to stifle his body's reaction to her quiet presence against his skin, hungry as it was.

"Get on with it then." Rowan grunted, 

"Hm?"

"Aren't you going to beat me for...y'know." 

Talwyn laughed quietly, pulling herself further up onto his chest to perch there, knees tucked under his shoulders. Rowan turned his head away from her, though his eyes were wide and staring.

"Wh-"

"I'm not going to beat you, I want to know what kind of man you are. One who is a degenerate pervert or one who is just lonely." She drew her hands up her thighs in a slow manner meant to tease him, he was sure.

When her skirt began to rise he closed his eyes and then looked away purposefully again.

"What? Why? Does it matter?" He tried to shake her off in annoyance, feeling a sharp twist in his stomach as he inhaled deeply and got a small scent of her again. Warm and inviting.

"Well if you are a pervert I can make use of that. I wont judge you, I understand." She settled her skirts, holding them in her fists around her waist. She seemed quite happy to put herself on display, quietly confident there wasn't much he could do about it other than choose to watch or not.

"If you're just lonely then we can talk. After all I can be lonely too." Talwyn watched him curiously, noticing the flush that was spreading down his chest. She knew what most men wanted, at least the ones her age. It seemed to her that particular set of desires never really went away, but they built up slower in older people. 

It wasn't as if she was disinterested in a good fuck, but men her age were like spring rabbits. Quick and uncaring and gone just as fast. She hoped this one wouldn't be a disappointment. 

"People can be both, Talwyn. Gods help you what are you doing?" Rowan grunted and tried to feebly grasp control of the situation back from where it was heading, then finally looked at her properly. He tried to stare her down but it was painfully difficult to keep his eyes from where she wanted him to look.

Good hips, he decided. He realised he could probably fit both hands around her waist and his fingertips would touch. It was a dramatic difference, striking, just like the rest of her.

"Is it what you thought it would be?" Talwyn asked, sliding her hand down between her legs to toy with the soft curls there, "When you were pressing your face into my stockings were you imagining this?"

Rowan scowled, but his eyes remained fixed on her fingers and their delicate movements. They became more purposeful a moment later, dipping down further with a slick, wet noise. They returned shining in the dim light as they were brought up to Rowan's lips.

"I think it's unfair of you to get such pleasure out of me without giving any in return." Talwyn told him briskly.

Rowan wondered if she was just trying to push at him, torment him or if this was what she wanted. He decided that if she was angry enough with him to tie him to his bed he wasn't certain what else she would do. He might as well enjoy what he could.

"That's...that's fair." He muttered. Talwyn pushed her wet fingers past his lips and he accepted them without much resistance. His tongue lapped at them, then sucked on them when the familiar taste brought back old memories. 

A little noise escaped Talwyn, a pleased gasp. Rowan grunted with his mouth full in response. That was a good noise, he liked that one.

"I think you're a pervert." She told him, pulling her fingers from his mouth and peering at him down her nose.

"Fine." Rowan sighed, he was tired of this game. But he supposed she was young and this was all still new to her. She could do what she wanted and then she'd go back to her life, curiosity sated.

"Fine?" She seemed surprised, pulling her clothes off entirely her voice slightly muffled, "That's fine by you?"

"You can think what you like, I'm not the one who tied up a man while he slept." His words were sharp but his tone was soft and contemplative, watching her move.

"That's true." She conceded, "But you're a big man and I'm just some poor girl you spied on in the river bathing. Remember?"

"Yes, you poor thing." He sighed, inhaling another lungful of her. Gods it was distracting.

"I don't think you're taking me seriously." She told him archly, folding her arms across her chest. There was a note of frustration in her voice, as if she was wanting something from him and not quite getting it.

"Oh I'm taking you very seriously, but there's not much I can do." he pulled at his wrists, "Like this. So you can do what you want, doesn't matter what I say, does it?"

"I can do whatever I want." Talwyn reminded him, and he felt a small smirk pulling at his features. It wasn't framed as a question or a realisation, but a kind of petulant huff.

"Go on then." He lay back more fully on his bed, watching her with an expectant shuffling beneath her. 

Another noise of frustration sounded from her and she smacked him smartly across the cheek. He found himself laughing. So that was it. She wanted to play with him and he'd stopped playing the way she was used to, or liked.

"Okay! Okay what is it?" He stretched his jaw and stared at her, feeling another twist of heat in his gut as she held herself. She looked a little uncertain, frustrated.

"You want to know why I did that at the river, right?" he tried to help her along and watched as she stared at him, a little less like a predator and more like a cat. Cautious.

"If I was just a pervert I would have done that to anyone but if I like you it's better, yes?" He wondered if she'd even thought that much about it, or if these kinds of feelings were all new to her.

"I'm not a pervert, I don't like young girls." he insisted, grunting in surprise as he felt Talwyn's hand reach back and grasp at his cock that was now achingly hard in her palm.

"I think your body is more honest than the rest of you." She told him heatedly.

"And...hah, and if I like you? How do you tell?" He tried to keep his hips still but he couldn't help his cock twitching and leaking against her fingers as she curiously touched at it.

"I'll find out." She insisted.

"What?" He laughed a little, exasperated as he watched her turn away from him. 

She hesitated for a moment then perched herself over his face, and he couldn't really summon the insistence to turn away. There was little rational thought left his his head as he started nuzzling his face against her pussy, nose and tongue prying her open to lap at her.

Talwyn could only make soft, surprised noises. She tilted her hips back and forth slowly guiding him to where she wanted him, keeping herself upright with her palms against his middle. It felt better than she thought it would, more strange and warm as well.

Using him as he had used her clothes was rather gratifying. There had been the initial outrage of his act only after he had run off and the shock had ebbed away. She hadn't been there to be enjoyed, she had been there to damn well bathe.

Rowan's mouth formed a circle as it found her clit and sucked on it for long enough to make Talwyn's hips jump.

"Ah!" She looked down at him, scowling, "If you are so keen to please a woman why did you skulk about with my under things near the river?"

His voice was muffled against her and she wriggled, "No, I don't want to hear your excuses actually. Keep licking."

To her surprise, he did as he was told. It made a small, heady shiver creep up her spine that this giant of a man was actually listening to her.

"Are you scared of talking to me, like the others?" She asked between laboured breaths, "Sneaking around looking at me to make sly comments about my hair? How pale I am? I don't want you to be scared of me I want you to be brave with me."

Rowan snorted a laugh through his nose but didn't stop what he was doing. He enjoyed feeling her dribble down his chin, her warm skin against his tongue and lips.

"I think you were right. I think people can be perverts and interested in me." She gasped, and started practically riding his face.

"I think you're both, it makes me happy to think that you like me even though you know it's strange." She became oddly still as he found a very nice spot that was making it hard to think. 

"There...there yes." She panted, feeling Rowan's enthusiasm building as he grunted and strained at the ties on his wrists until she shuddered away from his reach. Too much. Enough. For the time being.

Braced over him he could see her twitching and hear her whining as she tried to calm herself. If she had wanted to torment him she was doing a very fine job of it. 

His cock was so hard he thought something might happen to it unless he calmed himself soon. Though Talwyn staring at it wasn't helping. 

"So..." Rowan licked his lips and felt a deep satisfaction as she struggled to kneel on the bed beside him, "...was that enough for your curiosity? Will you let me go now?"

"Why would I let a pervert go in that state?" She said softly, turning back to look at him.

"So fix it." He grunted, "I don't care how. But we're even now, yes? That's what you wanted. To teach me a lesson for being weak. I understand."

"Do you?" She gripped at his cock, looking smug as he closed his eyes. She knew how to touch one of these at least, that was easy enough.

"No. No I suppose...not. Never had someone smell my clothes."

"You got to enjoy me but without me." She muttered, and with a sigh he realised his mistake. His hips started moving in time with her hand, pushing up into her palm. He enjoyed the attention for some breathless moments.

"I'm sorry. That was...that was wrong of me." He felt her hand slow and he grit his teeth as he watched her steadily.

She seemed quietly curious at his admitting of guilt, watching his face.

"You could have just come to me."

"You're a girl Talwyn. Don't play that hand to me like I don't know what the cards mean." He tried to scowl at her but she moved her hand again, changing her grip and his eyes fluttered closed.

"Maybe, but I'm not unaware of what you were doing, or what you were thinking about." She slowed her hand again, watching his chest rising and falling.

"I can't just come take you behind a wall like some fucking buck, girl-Talwyn. People will be angry. You think they talk now? They would run us both out." He could feel he was close and he cursed under his breath as Talwyn's hand left him.

"Well what if I don't care?" She told him tartly,

"Don't be fucking stupid." He growled, feeling the edge perilously close. So damned close.

"I'm not stupid. But I want the attention you want to give me, Rowan." She sounded like she had made a decision for the both of them.

"I can't do that. I can't." He whined, he knew he sounded like a beaten dog, "It doesn't matter what I want, or what you want it matters that we both get to live. This is why you're just a girl, you don't think. You don't fucking think."

He tugged at the restraints again, and watched as her expression shifted. She looked a little pleased, oddly. Like her getting a reaction out of him pleased her more than anything.

"I'm fine with not thinking, if I can do it with you. If you refuse I'll tell people what you did at the river." She threatened.

He stilled himself and watched her body language. She looked like a rabbit ready to bolt. He doubted she would really tell anyone. That wasn't part of the game, that wasn't any fun. But the threat was enough.

"Fine. Damn you fine." He lifted his hips in a pitiful display, silently demanding attention.

"Really?" She sounded surprised and he wanted to laugh but he couldn't muster the sound over the strain his body was under.

"Yes, whatever you want. Just touch me damn you." He growled that last part, feeling what little resolve was left ebb away.

Talwyn leant over and gently placed her mouth over the head of his cock while her hand gripped at him firmly. It was more than he expected. The sensation was too much and a few blissful seconds later he spent himself in her mouth with a whine.

It was certainly more than Talwyn expected as well, her jaw ached from trying to fit the head of him into her mouth in that state. But she was practiced enough to not leave a mess, feeling accomplished as she swallowed him down. Listening to him whining and panting because of her made her grin.

She untied him and let his limbs hang loose at his sides, watching him cautiously as if expecting a reprimand or a smack upside the head. Instead he just rubbed his wrists and stretched. 

"Go home, Talwyn." he sighed.

"What? But you said that-"

"And now I am saying go home." He handed her back her clothes and firmly pushed her from his bed.

"I thought you were a man of your word!" She hissed at him, pulling her clothing back on. Her stockings and boots were by the door it seemed, as she stormed over there to tug them on in the just rising dawn light.

"Well, we're both disappointed in me this morning." He admitted, examining the marks on his wrists.

Talwyn said nothing but stormed back into his room, kicking at his ankles and his shin until he forcefully pushed her from his room. She didn't say anything at that. There were no more threats just red faced, frustrated silence as she stormed away from the farrier's home.


	2. Quiet in the garden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rowan can't avoid Talwyn forever, but his eroding willpower is beginning to make things difficult for the both of them. Keeping quiet is the only thing they can do for now.

Though Rowan awaited angry, indignant youths with sticks to beat him for his recklessness, none came. He awaited Talwyn’s mentor, Mari the herbalist, to come quietly with her soft voice but firm hands to tell him he was to be banished, but she never arrived either. It gave him an uneasy kind of peace during the days that passed, relaxing more with every passing evening.

Talwyn had been angry with him, and he’d been angry with himself. However that promised retribution hadn’t arrived after a week which made him think it probably wouldn’t ever arrive. Talwyn didn’t seem the sort to let a wound fester for too long. She’d always managed her own affairs in a fairly straightforward manner, ever since she’d arrived. About a year after he had set up in the village.

It was easy enough to avoid Talwyn while he worked. He was usually working on a farm with a cow or sheep or bending horseshoes at his anvil. She was up early in the morning to collect herbs then busy helping Mari most of the day.

A morning came where tending to a cow’s hoof ended in pus and blood. Infection. He had stared at the wound dripping onto his apron and sighed to himself. This would need a poultice and packing to keep the infection off the ground. He stood and stared out across the yard and tried to conjure excuses from the air but only found more happy flies and shit. 

Mari’s home was on the edge of the village, bordering a stream and meadow. Her short, squat buildings that made up her yard suited her, if you felt unkind you could match her thick blonde hair to the thatch of her roof, but it wasn’t wise to upset a herbalist so.

Rowan had cleaned up and changed out of his apron to go up and fetch the poultice. As he approached up the dirt road he could see a pale head bobbing around in one of the low walled gardens. Talwyn stood upright, one bundle of weeds under her arm and observed him with a sudden stillness that worried him a little. She hurried herself back into the main cottage. Rowan slowed his pace to the front gate, anticipating some kind of welcome.

Mari opened the door, leaning half out of it as Rowan caught sight of Talwyn’s pinafore leaving through the side door, back into the gardens. Mari regarded him with mild curiosity, nodding.   
  
“Rowan. Good morning, what can I do for you?” She paused and wiped the sweat from her brow before heading back into the steam of her kitchen, “Come in, come.”   
  
There were always pots of something or other boiling in Mari’s main house. The house was mostly kitchen, overtaken by a central low grate with several dark pots bubbling away at a low, even boil. Rowan was swift with what he needed from her, making his explanation short so he didn’t have to sit and sweat for long.   
  
Mari listened silently, thoughtful until she told him to ask Talwyn for a specific set of herbs.    
  
“They’ll make sure that the infection doesn’t take again. Tell Talwyn to make up a batch. She’s outside with them now anyway.”   
  
“Uh, them?” Rowan asked, trying to ignore the tensing of his hands at being unable to avoid her any longer,

  
“The herbs! The herbs.” Mari laughed a little then went back to her pots, waving Rowan outside.    
  
“Right.” He stood and headed out the side door, grateful to be breathing dry air. He ran a hand over his face to work the sweat off his eyes and noticed that Talwyn’s dress under her pinafore had become mysteriously loose in the time he’d been speaking with Mari.   
  
It was practically falling off her shoulders as she stood from her kneeling with the weeds and walked over to him. From his high vantage point, being a head taller than her, he got a good eyeful of skin.    
  
Well if that’s what she wanted to show him that was fine. Though part of him remembered that he hadn’t actually gotten to touch much of her at all, what with his hands being tied. That was a shame.   
  
“What’re you after?” she asked him, voice slightly too light for the silent weight of her question.    
  
“Mari said you’d make me up a poultice to fight off infection.” He explained, refusing to stare for too long.   
  
“What’s wrong with you?” She put down the weeds into a barrel near the back wall, dusting off her hands and fetching up some tools from a low bench.   
  
“Nothing.” He paused, “Nothing new. The Baxter’s cows need it.”   
  
“Oh. Well, I can do that.” She smiled at him, and he wished it wasn’t quite so sweet. He could see in her step and manner that her profession satisfied her, for the most part. The very purposeful way that she was moving and stopping to bend forwards to cut certain herbs away from their stems was telling.   
  
The soft curves of her chest moved in and out of view behind the cotton of her dress as she collected what she needed. Rowan stood by the bench, watching her for a time feeling that awkward shame rising to his face.   
  
He sat on the low bench, crossing his arms and closing his eyes. He could hear Mari in the house behind him clanking and shifting things around, keeping a careful eye on her work.    
  
Talwyn sighed as she approached, smirking a little at Rowan’s choice to close his eyes.    
  
“Tired?” She teased, sitting down purposefully close to him.    
  
“Tired of some things.” He grunted, opening his eyes with a sigh. This girl was determined, but apparently unwilling to get him into too much trouble. That was something.   
  
He watched her lay out the herbs on the workbench, stripping away the stems slowly, purposefully. The shoulder of her dress fell away entirely and his eyes followed it. From his position sitting behind her he could admire the line of her neck and shoulder, which was of course what she wanted.    
  


“You’re strangely keen on playing these games.” he said thoughtfully, “Could you hurry it up?”   
  
“I can do my job well, or fast. You choose.” She paused to look over her bare shoulder at him, “And I don’t know what games you’re talking about.”   
  
Rowan stared at her evenly. There was something equally as stubborn about her gaze that she shot back at him before going back to her work with the herbs. Rowan sat up and moved closer to Talwyn, noting how she paused. He didn’t want to disappoint, and slid his hand across her bare shoulder.   
  
“I’m done playing.” He said softly, moving his hand down her front to her chest. He cupped her breast in his palm, feeling it fill the curve of his hand easily. The soft inhale of air she made before she spoke made him smile.   
  
“If I shout, Mari will come out here and skelp you with a pan.” She hissed softly,   
  
“Go on then. I told you I’m done playing.” He let himself enjoy the sensation of soft skin, squeezing her gently.    
  
When no yelling or scratching came, Rowan pressed his face into the back of Talwyn’s head. He had to hide the smirk that was etched there, tinged with worry and exasperation at himself. Talwyn’s hands began moving again, she had a job to do after all. Rowan chuckled into her hair, fingers moving slowly over her.   
  
The sensation of his calloused fingertips grazing her skin sent strange shockwaves through her, settling in a hot pool in her belly. She wasn’t sure what this meant. She kept working. Boys had given her tits attention before but they had always moved on quickly, or she’d slapped their hands away for being too rough, too fast.   
  
This strange new pace was making her breathless. Wasn’t that supposed to be hard and fast? Something to knock the wind out of you. That’s what had been promised her before and while it had been hard and fast, it had never really left her curious for more. Not from boys her age at least. This problem with Rowan was becoming a fixation, she was sure.   
  
Rowan’s fingers pinched at one of her nipples and she sucked in a sharp breath, fighting the urge to make a noise.   
  
“ _ Mari is inside the house _ .” Talwyn whispered, pulling the mortar and pestle closer. The scowl on her face was obvious as she glanced back to the door of the cottage.   
  
“So keep quiet and don’t disturb her.” Rowan replied glibly, but equally as soft.

The herbs were placed in the mortar without ceremony. Talwyn ground them as quickly as she dared. It was difficult to balance the enjoyment of the attention, the worry that Mari would see and actually doing the task at hand.   
  
Another pinch from Rowan’s wandering fingers made Talwyn’s hand slip on the pestle.   
  
“You’re very keen for someone who was telling me off.”   
  
She picked up the pestle again, mashing it into the thin paste that was forming.   
  
“You’re the only one who gets to tease?” Rowan said, though his hand paused for a moment when he heard Mari’s footsteps. She was moving about, as busy as ever but not close to the door. When nothing came of it he continued on, leaning closer against Talwyn’s back to watch her work.    
  
Talwyn huffed out a short breath, she supposed she deserved that.   
  
“You going to give me what I want then?”   
  
“Hah, no.”   
  
“Bastard.”   
  
“Mhm.”   
  
There was a warmth in his voice that she swore she could feel as his fingers moved up to her collarbone to gently feel along it to her shoulder. It was a frustratingly light touch. She didn’t have the patience to just enjoy the moment. It might be gone soon. He would be gone soon.    
  
“If you’re just going to leave me like this again you should stop.” She said.    
  
The sullen tone in her voice caught Rowan’s hand before it could move again. He wanted to think himself better than her childish games but he was just playing them as well. Fuck, it was good to feel wanted again. Wasn’t much of an excuse but it was enough to put his hands on her, so he told himself with that twist in his gut reminding him why he’d been so adverse to begin with.   
  
“If I give you what you want, you’re going to stop this?” He said, voice still soft. He watched her hands slow to a standstill over the mortar.   
  
“Maybe. Maybe I’ll like it enough to come back again.”   
  
“I told you why that’s a bad idea.”   
  
“Then why are you here?”    
  
She moved his hand from her shoulder back to her chest. Rowan sighed into her hair, comforting himself with an indulgent grip on her chest. What did she want from him? Well, he knew what she wanted but was that it? He could feel his cock rising with mild discomfort and adjusted his position sat on the bench.    
  
“Don’t know. Could be because I’m a miserable old goat.” He sighed, “And you were right about me, on both counts.”   
  
There was a smug noise from Talwyn as she began scraping out the poultice from the mortar, “I know.”   
  
“Yes, because you know what it’s like, don’t you?” he said. The touch on her chest took on a decidedly more aggressive bent. His other hand joined in, disturbing her work without much care.   
  
“The thief thinks that everyone steals.” he added, voice a low growl.   
  
“I’m not a pervert.” she said. She realised her voice was rather weak. It was hard to argue against it when she thought about it for a bit longer. She didn’t hate what was happening. That she had to be quiet, careful. That Mari was nearby while she was letting, encouraging Rowan to touch her.

“Well I’ll just take my hands off you then.”    
  
Rowan began to move his hands away, giving Talwyn enough time to snatch at his wrists and hold them in place. The mortar and pestle forgotten she glared back at him over her shoulder, but it was difficult to hold the expression while wanting to smile and finding breathing laboured.

“I like your hands on me. I want them to stay there. I want them to remain until I’ve had my fill of you.”    
Holding a commanding tone was a trial, she felt his hands tense and grip at her chest with an almost satisfied air as she spoke. Rowan watched her carefully, clearing the lump in his throat that had formed while he was growing painfully hard. Prior worries and concerns were seeming very irrelevant when she looked at him like that.   
  
“I get the impression that might take a while.” He mumbled.   
  
“You’re a sturdy man, you’ll manage.”    
  
Rowan wasn’t exactly sure what happened next. There was a shifting of clothing and a creaking of the bench as they both moved at the same time. Whatever decision they had come to it was one that was made quickly, grasping at each other to try and vent this mounting tension. Rowan’s hand worked its way under her skirts while she kissed him. Her hands gripped at the back of his neck and tugged at his braid, unwilling to be the only one investigated she pushed her tongue into his mouth.   
  
Though when Rowan’s hand moved between her legs to find her damp underwear she pulled away from him to gasp. Two of his fingers ground against her while he watched her hold onto his shoulder,   
  
“You need to keep quiet.” He reminded her, amused. Talwyn had no response for him now, words were too difficult for her overheated brain. She just nodded and helped his fingers into her pussy with near frantic movements of her hand.   
  
Rowan kept a more even pace, thick digits moving inside her in a practised manner as if searching for something. When Talwyn hid her face against his neck to try and muffle her voice, he couldn’t help but move with more enthusiasm. Her warmth was encouraging him onwards, knowing that he caused this in her was a heady thought, one that drove him to distraction. He nearly missed the sound of purposeful steps walking through Mari’s hut.   
  
There was another flurry of activity, Talwyn pushing away from Rowan with a whimper of discontent. Talwyn hurried to settle her skirts while Rowan shoved his hands into his apron pockets and felt the mad urge to laugh at the absurdity of what they were doing. What he was doing. Acting like he was her age, skittish and trying to hide private trysts from authoritarian eyes.   
  
The side door opened and Mari took a step out the door to peer into her gardens. Talwyn did her best to not look harried, methodically scraping the contents of the mortar into a small bowl while her knees shook under her.   
  
“Did you find everything alright?” Mari said, nodding to Rowan who nodded in return.   
  
“Yes, the thistles were just a little tough.” Talwyn turned and thrust the bowl towards Rowan without looking at him. Rowan took the bowl and smiled politely at Talwyn, there was nothing to be done. It felt good to let her see what could happen to them if she kept down this path. In a small, vindictive way he was glad. Larger parts of him were as frustrated as she was, and he hoped it didn’t show.   
  
“Good. Well, if you need any more of the paste you can just come back.”   
  
Mari then turned her attention back to Talwyn, looking at her as if Mari expected her apprentice to be using any excuse to be avoiding work. Sitting about having a nice chat on a warm day like today was a nice distraction after all.   
  
“I need that sorrel, Talwyn.” Mari said. There was a significant look that followed those words with an incline of her head and a nod towards the gardens.   
  
“Yes! Yes I’m going. Goodbye Rowan. Maybe we can continue our conversation later.”   
  
“Maybe.”   
  
Rowan stood as Mari headed back inside, restlessly going about her work. There was always something for Mari to be doing. Rowan gestured with the bowl that Talwyn had given him as a dismissive wave, silently telling her to get back to work. She stared back at him unwavering in her stubborn desire to get what she wanted. There was a lingering heat in her gaze that Rowan couldn’t meet for long. He glanced away and shook his head with an exasperated laugh, making Talwyn scowl.    
  
How dare he act like there was nothing happening moments before! She didn’t understand his reluctance and she could practically see his crumbling resolve like an obstacle she only had to overcome. As Rowan moved past her to leave through the garden gate, she touched at his forearm.   
  
“We will finish this conversation later.” She insisted   
  
“No.”   
  
“Coward.”   
  
Rowan pursed his lips, trying to untangle the conflicting feelings that he knew might harm the both of them in the end. The days warmth was beginning to ebb, but he could still feel the sun lingering on the back of his neck where Talwyn’s hands had been desperately clutching. He hoped that the crickets that were beginning to sing would be enough to mask the sound of his voice as he spoke,   
  
“Then come tell me later why you are so interested in this coward.” 

There was no time for a reply. Talwyn stumbled over her words and then fell silent, watching Rowan made his way through the herb beds and between two low buildings out of sight. It was already uncomfortable working in this heat and now her thighs were slick. She tried to think of something pithy to say to him the next time they met, until Mari poked her head out the door again,   
  
“Talwyn! Sorrel!”   
  
Sending Talwyn hurrying through the garden, then back to the work table to fetch her shears, then back into the garden again to continue her work in slightly sticky peace.


End file.
